Jim T's Caddy

Monday, January 13, 2014

Hand Crafted Pebble SmartWatch Pocket Watch and Fob

The Pebble Smart Watch Dressed in Leather and Silver

The case and pocket watch I carried until college.

When I was a kid there was a hill behind our house. It had the foundation of one of the first cabins in the area. It belonged to a preacher named Broad. I got this story from the old folks in the area that are long since gone. I did hear of indian attacks on the cabin and how they would shoot back at them from the rock foundation the house sat on.

I say all that to say this - I like things from the past. I especially like things from the 1860's to the 1880's. As a teenager I carried a pocket watch my Dad gave me. It was an Elgin with the spring loaded top.

Lately I have been interested in the new smart watches coming out. First I looked at the Pebble and dismissed it. Then I looked at the alternatives. I didn't want to spend so much I would feel bad about the purchase later so I kept on looking. Then I looked a the Nano 6th gen. It was cool but since Apple abandoned it I figured it had no future. Then I got back on the Pebble.

I wear vests and while I could have got one of my old pocket watches running I figured I could spend the same (or less) on a Pebble. I also know that ultimately the pocket watch will break again. Plus, I love my technology and the Pebble watch looks like something I should own.

I waited until after Christmas and hit ebay. Sure enough there were plenty of Pebble watches at a Buy It Now price around $100. I had one in my hand 3 days later.

I like what it can do but I didn't love the way it looked and I wanted to carry this thing as a pocket watch. I thought of a lot of different ways to do that but the only practical way seemed to be with leather. I have not messed with leather since I was a kid so I hit the Tandy leather store and bought some supplies.

The Watch Fob

The Pebble leather cover.

The leather and the Pebble cover that the leather will live on.

The question was how to attach the leather to the Pebble without harming it. I found a nice cover for $15 that snaps on and off. Now my leather piece can be removed easily and I can put a band on (that I will make out of leather) any time I want. I also wanted a fob. I measured my buckles and it only took two tries before I had what I wanted (shown above).

Cutting the leather and getting everything just right took some doing but I finally got things looking good.

With a little creative thinking and some trail and error I wound up with almost exactly what I saw in my head - a good looking, practical way to carry my Pebble in my vest via an 1880s silver watch chain.

The lifecycle of a new gadget is relatively predictable: When it’s brand new, only early adopters are interested. Once the technology matures, everybody buys one. But Smartwatch still haven’t caught on with most people—and that’s because no one has made a smartwatch that’s worth its cost.